Stakes & Stilettos - Michelle Rowen [52]
I glanced over at the store opening to the mall and my eyes bugged out to see that the witch-in-question, Stacy McGraw, currently stood directly in front of the store. Our eyes met. She smiled and waved at me.
“Thierry… she’s here,” I whispered into the phone. “Stacy’s here. I’m looking right at her.”
“She’s there? Don’t let her out of your sight. You need to—”
Stacy flicked her hand at me and the phone flew out of my grip and crashed against the floor, where it exploded in a tiny puff of smoke and flame.
She grinned. “I did a location spell to find out where you are. How’s it going?”
My eyes narrowed. “How do you think?”
“Ready to apologize to me yet?”
I put my hands on my hips. “Fine. I’m sorry, okay? Is that good enough for you?”
Stacy shook her head. “Wow. Not even slightly. You didn’t mean it. I want an apology that you mean.”
I took a step in her direction just as Amy called my name, and I glanced over at her.
“Sarah, what do you think of this?” She held up a necklace that had a big early-Madonna-like bejeweled cross on it.
I immediately added to my growing list of curse side-effects:
Extreme aversion to crosses. EXCRUCIATING.
The cross turned a blinding white color like a tiny death-sun and sent out waves of agony directly toward my eyeballs.
“Put that thing away!” I yelled at her, falling to my knees and covering my eyes.
The light disappeared and Amy rushed to my side. “Oh, my God. Sarah, I’m sorry! I didn’t even think about it.”
“It’s okay,” I said weakly. “Just don’t do it again. Please.”
I looked up at the entrance to the store but Stacy was gone. I staggered to my feet and ran outside looking in all directions.
That bitch. She’d completely disappeared.
I glanced off to the side to see George and Butch discussing something obviously more important than keeping an eye out for the witch who’d ruined my life. They looked at me.
“What?” they said in unison.
Panic clutched at my chest. I wanted this curse gone. I hated it. I hated everything about it. It was completely ruining my life.
I swallowed past the tears that wanted to fall and went back into the store, got the clerk to come out of the back, and Amy and I walked out five minutes later with two lovely matching diamond pendant necklaces.
Sure it was stealing, but at the moment I didn’t really give a rat’s ass.
I also kept the bathrobe. So sue me.
Chapter 10
We arrived at Haven at a little after nine o’clock, so it was open for business. A scattering of customers sat at the tables, sipping on their drinks in the upscale club and listening to a mixture of jazz and contemporary tunes. Two waiters—both of whom I knew had already landed jobs elsewhere in readiness for the club’s transferring ownership—strolled the floor. Since it was Friday it wouldn’t take long before the club was completely filled, as vampires of all professions came in to chill out after a long week at their day jobs.
I currently didn’t have a day job, but I sure as hell needed to chill out.
Thierry wasn’t sitting in his usual booth; instead he stood at the door scanning the entrance for our arrival. He came directly toward me as we entered the club and seemed about to hug or kiss me, but he didn’t. In fact, he took a step back from me.
I swallowed hard. He was afraid to touch me in case we went all vampire-Sid-and-Nancy on everyone. It figured that the moment Thierry was okay with public displays of affection, they were off the menu.
“I was worried,” he said, his face tight. “When the phone went dead—”
I held up a hand. “Stacy took off. I don’t know where she went.”
His jaw tightened. “At least we know she’s definitely in the city.”
“At least.” I felt a tap on my back and turned to see Amy with her arms out.
“Somebody need a hug?” she asked.
I nodded and hugged her. It was better than nothing.
She patted my back. “Just don’t bite me.”
I pulled back. “Why do you have to say something like that?”
“Better safe than sorry.”
George and Butch moved off to the side of the bar and ordered drinks before the bartender